Have you ever felt like you drew the short stick being a female? I sure have. Have you ever felt like God must favor males? That would be me again. I have never been angry because I am girl, but I have felt as if it were a sort of punishment. I did not realize that being a woman is a gift until I started the journey to embrace my femininity.
I have written before that I am very girly by nature, but this journey to become a godly woman was not about liking makeup, doing hair, wearing dresses, or hating dirt. I think we often mistake being girly with being feminine.
Having godly femininity:
- is not about whether or not makeup is fun for me or a chore for me.
- is not about whether or not I enjoy styling my hair every day or I let it air dry and don’t know or care to know about styling products.
- is not about whether or not we catch the most men’s eyes or have the most offers for dates.
It is about having a heart that longs to please our Savior. It is about not just tolerating, but embracing our God-given gender.
I used to think “Well, I will respect my husband and brothers because God calls me to do it.” Make no mistake; God calling us to do something is by far a good enough reason. However, I hate that for so long I looked at submission and femininity as a duty and chore, rather than a privilege. I thought being female was my cross to bear. I never hated being a girl; I love being a girl. I just dreaded all the duties that came with being a woman.
I thought it was terrible that I would have to one day (if marriage is God’s will for me) submit to man. In my mind submission was all about rules and giving up what I so wrongly assumed were my rights. You know – my right of having a man submit to my way of thinking because I obviously know what is best for me and everyone I love. Yuck!
Now, I realize that submission is not about giving up my rights. It is about surrendering my will to Christ.
God’s will is not for me to be married to a man who not a Christian, who is abusive, who twists and distorts His word. God’s will is for me to be married to a man who is surrendered to God’s will for both his life and mine.
When I am seeking God’s will for my own life, it is often not what I think it should be in my flesh. Why on earth would I expect for that to change based on the fact that I am married? If I am truly surrendered to Christ, I do not fear not having my way or my rights. I trust that God will protect me, guide me, and avenge me.
Not only that, but because I am a woman, I get the amazing privilege of being an inspiration. I get to inspire my man to want to reach his potential in the kingdom.
Wow!
If God does not have marriage in my future, I still get to embrace this gift. I get to encourage and lift up my brothers. Oh, how I long to see our brothers embraced, loved, and encouraged to be great men of God. Ladies, we have been given such a gift. We get to pray for our brothers. I didn’t realize the power of praying for our brothers until recently. I’ve always prayed for people, but making them personal just does something. It is our most powerful weapon and one of the most encouraging things we can do for them.
Most of us ladies love to chat. Why not use our words to encourage and uplift? Instead of talking about what men do wrong, why don’t we pray for them to encouraged, convicted (by God – not what we think), empowered, and strengthened? Imagine what God could accomplish through our brothers (and sisters), by us praying for them through the power of the Holy Spirit. Imagine how much they would want to do and serve when we are encouraging and cheering them on? What a blessing that we get this awesome privilege. I love the thought of being inspiration!
I cherish the times when God uses my words to inspire and bless. I love when a friend of mine is a bit down and God gives me words to say to encourage them. It makes me excited to know I have been used by God to brighten their day. I now realize that I have that same feeling amplified when someone is encouraged by my prayers inspired by the Holy Spirit! I get to combine my love for God, my love of encouraging, my love of words, and my desire to honor Christ all in one!!! It blows me away. I just want to pray for people and lift them up so much now. I get really excited about it. And, I love that God uses me to bless others. Again, what a beautiful, precious, amazing gift we have been given!
What has excited and amazed you on your journey to godly femininity?
